Foundations' Civic Engagement With Stakeholders

Nonprofit organizations often adopt social media such as Facebook to encourage stakeholders to engage in the organizational mission. Calls to action via social media tend to reach subscribers who “like” or follow the organization via one-way communication. Researching effective approaches to dialogic communication, which asks followers to engage rather than observe, the authors focus on relationship management theory (RMT). RMT stresses organizational-stakeholder dynamic interactions. Using a quantitative modeling approach, the authors examine Facebook posts made by three different types of foundations (community, corporate, and independent) to determine how foundations call for stakeholder engagement. To date, few studies focus directly on types of posts and the response, or lack of response, to organizational messages via social media. Civic engagement requires action on the part of the stakeholder to address social problems. Defining participation and engagement varies by field and types of interaction. This research contributes to literature examining the “digital citizen.”

Why Zoom Is Not Doomed Yet: Privacy and Security Crisis Response in the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic brought Zoom explosive growth and a major privacy and security crisis in March 2020. This research advances a producer’s perspective that directs attentions to institutional and organizational actors and draws on theories of privacy management and organizational crisis communication to examine Zoom’s response to its privacy and security crisis. We primarily use data from 14 weekly Ask Eric Anything webinars from April 8 to July 15, 2020 to illustrate the strategies of Zoom’s crisis response, especially organizational representation, the contours of its analytic account acknowledging and reducing responsibility, and patterns of corrective and preventive action for user education and product improvement. Results demonstrate the usefulness of the producer’s perspective and shed light on how Zoom navigated the privacy and security crisis through mobilizing networks of executives, advisors, consultants, and clients for expertise, endorsement, and collaboration. Moreover, its response strategies have built on and contributed to Zoom’s organizational mission and culture, reframing the crisis as a growth opportunity for prioritizing privacy and security rather than mere growing pains. Zoom’s nimble, reasonable, collaborative, interactive and curated organizational response to its privacy and security crisis as an unintended consequence of its sudden rise to prominence amid a global pandemic offers a useful model for tech firms’ crisis response at a crucial moment for the tech industry around the world. Implications are relevant to understanding the socio-technical and economic consequences of this ongoing global pandemic.

The Rise and Fall of the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation, 1962-1973: a Study in Political and Administrative Relationships

<p>This thesis examines the political "career" of the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation from the time of its inception in April, 1962, until the decision of the third Labour Government, 11 years later, to abolish it. In particular, it is a study of the ways in which the organisation's search for autonomy was mediated by evolving relationships among key actors: respective Ministers of Broadcasting, N.Z.B.C. Chairmen and Board members, and Directors-General of Broadcasting; and by the tensions that arose out of the demands of administrative accountability on the one hand and of professional autonomy - especially in respect of the organisation's journalistic staff - on the other. The thesis examines the implications of governmental appointment of the N.Z.B.C.'s Board members, and the problems arising out of the retention of ministerial responsibility for public broadcasting during this period. These aspects are discussed with reference to the theory of the public corporation in general. The thesis also examines aspects of administrative leadership within the Corporation, in particular the definition of organizational mission, and the promotion of institutional identity, both internally and externally. It concludes that the demise of the N.Z.B.C. is explicable principally in terms of conflicts which stemmed from the nature of the tasks the organisation was called upon to perform, especially the introduction and expansion of a television service within New Zealand, and the development of news and current affairs broadcasting; in terms of the political constraints and influences - both real and apparent - that worked upon it; and of shortcomings of administrative leadership within the organisation. The analysis is provided against the background of a review of the history of public broadcasting in New Zealand, from the early 1920's until the advent of the Corporation. This review is organised under five heads which bear upon the content of the main analysis: the control of broadcasting in New Zealand; the development of news and controversial broadcasting; the debate on monopoly and competition; the emergence of a philosophy of public broadcasting in New Zealand, with particular reference to the role of the first Director of Broadcasting, Professor (later Sir James) Shelley; and the advent of the N.Z.B.C.</p>

The Rise and Fall of the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation, 1962-1973: a Study in Political and Administrative Relationships

<p>This thesis examines the political "career" of the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation from the time of its inception in April, 1962, until the decision of the third Labour Government, 11 years later, to abolish it. In particular, it is a study of the ways in which the organisation's search for autonomy was mediated by evolving relationships among key actors: respective Ministers of Broadcasting, N.Z.B.C. Chairmen and Board members, and Directors-General of Broadcasting; and by the tensions that arose out of the demands of administrative accountability on the one hand and of professional autonomy - especially in respect of the organisation's journalistic staff - on the other. The thesis examines the implications of governmental appointment of the N.Z.B.C.'s Board members, and the problems arising out of the retention of ministerial responsibility for public broadcasting during this period. These aspects are discussed with reference to the theory of the public corporation in general. The thesis also examines aspects of administrative leadership within the Corporation, in particular the definition of organizational mission, and the promotion of institutional identity, both internally and externally. It concludes that the demise of the N.Z.B.C. is explicable principally in terms of conflicts which stemmed from the nature of the tasks the organisation was called upon to perform, especially the introduction and expansion of a television service within New Zealand, and the development of news and current affairs broadcasting; in terms of the political constraints and influences - both real and apparent - that worked upon it; and of shortcomings of administrative leadership within the organisation. The analysis is provided against the background of a review of the history of public broadcasting in New Zealand, from the early 1920's until the advent of the Corporation. This review is organised under five heads which bear upon the content of the main analysis: the control of broadcasting in New Zealand; the development of news and controversial broadcasting; the debate on monopoly and competition; the emergence of a philosophy of public broadcasting in New Zealand, with particular reference to the role of the first Director of Broadcasting, Professor (later Sir James) Shelley; and the advent of the N.Z.B.C.</p>

Analysis of the views of NGO representatives’ about social responsibility of HEI: case of Mariupol State University

The article investigates the university social responsibility and the conditions in which the implementation of social functions carried out by higher education institutions can be possible. Models of interaction between society and universities are presented: the model of «civic university», which means the interaction of university, local community and local government, and the model of «quadruple spiral of innovation», which means a high degree of interaction between universities, business, government and society in various organizational forms. In the conditions of societal changes Ukrainian universities are gradually adapting their organizational mission to expand the list of functions, including those that meet the principles of social responsibility. To analyze the social responsibility of Ukrainian HEIs, a case method was applied, to analyze public materials of Mariupol State University. This university was chosen for research for a number of reasons: the institution is integrated into the life of the local community, city and region; the institution has successful experience of cooperation with local authorities and local NGOs; the university has educational programs in the humanities, social sciences and public administration; MSU staff and students are involved in many local community initiatives. To study the degree of interaction between the university and the local community, the representatives of local NGOs were interviewed. They, on the one hand, confirmed the hypothesis of the study that cooperation between HEIs and NGOs increases the ability of both social actors to respond to current local needs of communities, but outlined the main problems of this interaction, which are characteristic of most HEIs of the country: a high degree of bureaucracy, focusing on the provision of educational services and research, projects related to the infrastructure of the institution and its international presence. It is concluded that the policy of isolationism of Ukrainian HEIs inhibits the adaptation of the «civic university» model and the “quadruple spiral of innovation” model in Ukrainian society.

Leveraging the organizational mission statement to communicate identity, distinctiveness and purpose to primary and secondary stakeholders during COVID-19

PurposeThis study examines comprehensiveness and responsiveness of mission statements for the top 100 retailers on the 2020 National Retailers Federation list in order to (1) evaluate how effectively they communicate organizational identity, values and purpose, (2) underscore a distinctive commitment to stakeholders and (3) what extent these efforts are reflected in revised mission statements or addenda to meet global pandemic challenges.Design/methodology/approachThe study employs a 4-question metric to measure comprehensiveness and a two-pronged qualitative method of analysis consisting of keyword searches followed by content analysis.FindingsRetailer statements are considerably comprehensive in describing purpose and audience yet very few articulate stakeholder value, differentiate themselves as distinctive or substantively reaffirm their core mission and values. Retailers seem more invested in strategic communication around diversity, equity and inclusion, based on web content in their consumer, job seeker and investor touchpoints.Research limitations/implicationsCoding and interpreting language through content analysis methods may introduce some level of subjectivity, particularly when dealing with unstructured data. Implications for how organizations acclimated in order to survive and thrive, while maintaining focus on stakeholders and strategy. Examining organizational mission statements and their contexts yields perspective into how organizations define themselves and what they do during times of crisis.Originality/valueThis study provides insights into the content, structure and functions of the statements against a specific comprehensiveness metric and reveals patterns about the texts and their contexts during a pandemic and strong cultural and societal movements.

Mirroring Empowerment: Exploring Structural Barriers to Volunteer Motivation Fulfillment in an All-Female Youth Sport Program

This study utilizes structuration theory to reveal how volunteer coaches in an all-female youth sport program describe barriers and agency to their organizational mission of athlete empowerment. The dataset in this ethnographic case study comes from volunteer coaching experiences within two youth sport teams. Ethnographic data included field notes from four volunteer coaches, collaborative interviews, archival organizational documents, as well as athlete and parent interviews. A qualitative analysis, informed by structuration theory, revealed specific legitimate, dominant, and symbolic structures that enabled and constrained volunteer and youth athlete empowerment within the teams. The analysis also revealed a process of mirroring empowerment, a novel theoretical concept, which describes how athletes reflected back their own empowerment to empower volunteer coaches. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

QUALITY OF LIFE AND FORMATION OF CONTEMPORARY LIFE MEANINGFUL VALUES

The article is devoted to the representations of the quality of life in various fields of sociohumanistic sciences, influenced by the dynamics and evolution of such disciplines. The article tackles the quality of life as a mechanism of social development, whereas the formation of values in the organizational environment is analyzed throughout its contribution to the development of human potential and the achievement of the organizational mission, both requiring standards of quality. The philosophical analysis of the essence and content of the quality of life category offered the possibility to reveal its ontological, axiological and ethical aspects.

Familiarity with Mission and Vision: Impact on Organizational Commitment and Job Satisfaction

Background: The relationship between organizational mission and vision statements, organizational commitment, and job satisfaction has been discussed vastly in previous research, both in the domain of public sector organizations and in profit organizations. Objectives: The goal is to investigate if there are differences in organizational commitment and job satisfaction between employees who are familiar with the mission and vision of their organization, compared to those who are not familiar with them. Methods/Approach: A survey research has been conducted on a sample of 114 employees in private and public sector organizations in the Republic of Croatia. Data were analysed using a t-test to determine the differences between two groups of respondents, i.e. those who are familiar with the visions and mission of their organisation, and those who are not. Results: There are differences in job satisfaction levels between employees who are familiar with the mission and vision of the organization in which they are employed and those who are not. Furthermore, differences are particularly evident in the group of public sector employees. Conclusions: The presence of awareness of the organizational mission and vision among employees has a positive effect on their job satisfaction. This is possibly an indicator of the organization’s culture, which fosters positive values embedded in the organizational vision and mission.

Analysis of the level of disclosure of the mission statements of large Brazilian companies,

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to verify the level of disclosure of the survival, growth, and profitability (SGP) construct in the mission statements of Brazilian companies and in the collective discourse of different economic sectors, classified according to the “Biggest & Best” Annual published by Exame Magazine. The research seeks to fill the gap in the field by studying the disclosure of the SGP construct in the mission statements of large Brazilian companies. Considering the mission statement as the genesis of strategic planning, an analysis of the disclosure of the SGP construct allows for a discussion of the relevance of the contribution of the mission statement to the elaboration, implementation, and monitoring of that planning. The benefit of a mission statement aligned with the strategic planning lies in adequate communication to the stakeholders regarding the long-term SGP goals, based on the assumption that comprehensive and objective communication minimizes the risks of failures during the management process. Collective subject discourse (CSD) was used to develop a qualification metric of the constitutive elements of the organizational mission statements, enabling it to be identified whether the Brazilian companies, grouped into different economic sectors, are smoothing, concealing, or omitting the construct formed by the SGP components in their mission statements. This study investigates the presence or not of the SGP components in the collective discourse of mission statements of 220 large Brazilian companies. Most of the companies analyzed in the sample do not include SGP in their mission statements and those that do discuss it with discursive vagueness, lacking clarity in their disclosure of the components. For the academia, this finding contributes to understanding the constituent components of the mission statements of large Brazilian companies. For organizations, the findings indicate the need to reflect on the content to be used in the formulation of their mission statements.